Plant support J-hook

ABSTRACT

A plant support device designed to support the weight of a limb, branch or other plant segment by connecting to both the plant and a supporting string or wire. The plant support device is preferably made of a semi-rigid plastic and includes an elongated shaft portion, a hook portion connected at one end of the shaft portion, and an attachment portion having a clip connected at the other end. The attachment portion is designed to securely attach to the string such that in use the plant support device is suspended from the string and can carry the weight of the plant without sliding down the string. The attachment portion preferably includes several projections and a complementary recess that together define a sinuous slot for receiving and retaining the string.

CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATION

This application is a continuation-in-part of U.S. application Ser. No. 10/400,782 filed Mar. 27, 2003, which claims the priority of U.S. Provisional Application No. 60/368,031 filed Mar. 27, 2002. The complete disclosures of both applications are hereby incorporated by reference.

TECHNICAL FIELD

This invention relates to a plant support device, and more specifically, to a plant support device having a J-hook configuration for securing a plant limb to a support structure.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

Various types of plant support devices, including rings, clips, stakes, trusses, hooks, cages, twine, etc., have been developed for supporting plants so that their agricultural yields are increased. These devices support limbs or stalks that are weighted down or otherwise stressed to prevent them from breaking or kinking, which in turn can restrict the flow of water and/or nutrients to outlying fruits or vegetables. As the fruits or vegetables grow in size and weight, so too does the need for supporting them.

It is known in the art to use a plant support device in conjunction with a vertically or horizontally aligned support structure such as a string or wire, such that the support device acts as a sort-of intermediary between the plant and the wire. In such an arrangement, a portion of the weight of the limb, including any fruit or vegetable growing thereon, is born by the support device and the wire and not the plant itself. Because the support device buttresses the plant, it increases the agricultural load the plant is able to bear without breaking or kinking any of its limbs. Examples of some plant support devices are disclosed in U.S. Pat. Nos. 4,655,000, 6,254,049 and 6,718,691. Although various types of plant support devices are known in the art, design challenges still remain and should be considered.

For instance, installing and removing one or more individual plant support devices for each plant in a large agricultural operation can be quite labor intensive. Moreover, some agricultural operations require periodic oversight and the occasional installation of additional support devices to accommodate the continued growth of the plants being monitored. Thus, it would be advantageous to provide a plant support device that can easily and quickly be installed and removed from a plant.

Also, it is not uncommon for certain annual plants to be disposed of once their fruit or vegetable has been harvested. In such a case, the individual removal of each plant support device from each plant could be quite a time consuming endeavor. Therefore, it would also be advantageous to provide a plant support device that is inexpensive such that it is economically feasible to dispose of the support device when the plant is disposed of.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

According to an embodiment of this invention, there is provided a plant support device for use with a support structure that includes an elongated shaft portion, a hook portion and an attachment portion. The attachment portion includes a projection and a complementary recess separated from one another by a slot, wherein the plant support device is installed on the support structure such that the support structure is retained in the slot by the projection and recess.

According to another embodiment, there is provided a plant support device also having a shaft portion, a hook portion and an attachment portion, but the attachment portion includes sections that define first and second slots. The first and second slots are non-linearly aligned to retain the support structure.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

A preferred exemplary embodiment of the present invention will hereinafter be described in conjunction with the appended drawings, wherein like designations denote like elements, and:

FIG. 1 is a side view of an embodiment of the plant support device of this invention;

FIG. 2 is a top-down view of the plant support device of FIG. 1;

FIG. 3 is a close-up view of the attachment portion of the plant support device of FIG. 1;

FIG. 4 is an end view of the plant support device of FIG. 1, and;

FIG. 5 is a perspective view of the plant support device of FIG. 1, where the device is supporting a plant limb and is attached to a support structure.

DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENT

With reference to FIGS. 1-5, there is shown an embodiment of plant support device 10, which is designed to support a plant limb by fastening that limb to a support structure such as a string or wire. Plant support device 10 is preferably made from a relatively inexpensive, semi-rigid plastic material capable of withstanding prolonged exposure to the elements. An example of an appropriate material is a copolymer polypropylene having an ultraviolet stabilizer. The plant support device generally includes a hook portion 12, a shaft portion 14 and an attachment portion 16, all of which are preferably formed together during manufacture to form a unitary component.

Hook portion 12 is located on one end of support device 10 and is sized and shaped to receive a limb, branch, stalk, vine or some other segment of the plant (hereafter simply referred to as a ‘plant segment’). Accordingly, the inner diameter of the hook portion is large enough to accommodate the plant segment that it is supporting; otherwise, installation of plant support device 10 would be difficult if a worker was unable to fit the hook portion around the plant segment. In a preferred embodiment, hook portion 12 is semi-circular with an inner diameter in the range of 0.25″ to 1″, and is most desirably about 0.5″. Hook portion 12 preferably has a circular cross-section that is slightly larger than shaft portion 14, as demonstrated by the tapered connection or junction 30 located between those two portions.

Shaft portion 14 is a slim, elongated component having hook portion 12 located on one end, attachment portion 16 located on the other, and includes a grip or handle 32 located therebetween. According to a preferred embodiment, shaft portion 14 has a length that is in the range of 2″ to 5″, and is most desirably about 3.25″. Handle 32 is a thin plastic component that extends from shaft portion 14 in a direction that is generally perpendicular to the axis of the shaft. The handle is located at an axial position that is closer to attachment portion 16 than it is to hook portion 12, and at a circumferential position such that it extends in the same general direction as the hook portion. Put differently, hook portion 12 and handle 32 both extend outwardly, away from the longitudinal axis of shaft 14 and lie within a common plane. It has been found that the position, size and shape of handle 32 allows a worker to easily grasp and manipulate support device 10, such that installation of the plant support device is made easier.

Attachment portion 16 is designed to capture and securely attach to a support structure 34, such as a vertically-aligned string or wire, such that plant support device 10 is suspended from the support structure and can carry the weight of the plant without sliding along the support structure. Attachment portion 16 extends radially outward from the shaft in approximately the same direction as hook portion 12 and handle 32 and generally includes a clip 48 and a pair of ears 62. As shown in FIG. 3, clip 48 extends laterally away from shaft 14 and lies within the same common (imaginary) plane as hook 12 and handle 32. It includes a taper section 50, first and second projections 52, 54, a recess 56, a forward section 58, and a hook section 60; these components of the clip 48 define first and second portions 72 and 74 of a complex contoured slot 70.

Taper section 50 is preferably a flat, generally triangular component that adjoins shaft portion 14 and extends outwardly, away from the shaft in much the same manner as handle 32. In a center area of the taper section, ears 62 extend perpendicularly outward away from the taper section. On one end of the taper section resides first and second projections 52, 54 which extend into second and first portions 74, 72, respectively of slot 70. According to a preferred embodiment, the projections are of equal size such that they extend the same length outwardly away from taper section 50. Of course, it is possible to provide projections of unequal length, as it is also possible to increase or decrease the number of projections used. The size, shape and position of first and second projections 52, 54 play a role in the retention of support structure 34, as will be subsequently explained.

Recess 56 is formed in the forward section 58 and opens into the second slot portion 74. Preferably, recess 56 is complementary in shape to first projection 52 and is located directly across the second slot portion 74 from that projection. In this manner, recess 56 and first projection 52 work in conjunction with one another to grasp and retain a string or other support structure 34 when plant support device 10 is being installed; again, this will be subsequently explained in greater detail.

Forward and hook sections 58 and 60 form a generally hook-shaped end of the support device which, at least along the outer periphery, is not too much different than hook section 12. However, instead of the inner periphery also forming a hook-shaped configuration, inner periphery 80 of forward section 58 is flat such that it defines one side of the opening of slot 70. Hook section 60, on the other hand, is a thin finger-like component that extends backwardly from the forward section 58 such that it too defines a side of the opening of slot 70.

Ears 62 are best shown in FIGS. 2-4. Each of the ears extend laterally away from clip 48 on opposite sides of the common plane in which hook 12 and clip 16 both lie. The ears 62 comprise generally rectangular notched tabs extending outwardly and perpendicularly from clip 48 at taper section 50. Notches 82 are sized to receive a string, wire or other support structure 34 so that when the plant support device is installed on a plant, the string will come to rest in notch 82. Of course, the shape and configuration of the notches could differ from the embodiment shown here. Preferably, each ear 62 extends outwardly away from the taper section by a distance of 0.05″ to 0.5″, and most desirably by a distance of about 0.15″.

Slot 70 with its first and second portions 72 and 74 is an opening or channel in clip 48 that follows a complex contoured path, meaning that it has one or more bends or narrowed portions between its opening and inner end 74. The slot 70 is suitably sized to receive and capture a length of support structure 34, such that plant support device 10 is attached in a manner similar to that shown in FIG. 5. As shown in FIG. 3, the opening of slot 70 is much wider and larger overall than the other portions of the slot, which aids in capturing the support structure 34 initially as the support device 10 is first being installed. This is demonstrated by the position of support structure 34′, which is shown in dotted lines. Once plant support device is pulled further onto the string or support structure 34, the string squeezes by second projection 54 and is trapped in the first portion 72 of the slot. This is represented in FIG. 3 by support structure 34″, which is also shown in dotted lines. Now, it should be appreciated that retention of support structure 34 in the first portion 72 of the slot may be sufficient to attach the plant support device to the string such that it does not slide down the string. However, to further improve the attachment strength, the support device 10 can be further manipulated and pulled into the support structure so that the string slides past first projection 52, through recess 56, and into the second portion 74. Again, the position of the support structure in this end portion 74 of the slot is represented in dotted lines by 34′″. Where larger diameter stranded string is used, the string will actually flatten out and extend through the slot 70 on both sides of the first projection 52. Installing plant support device 10 onto support structure 34 such that the support structure is trapped within the end portion of the slot causes first and second projections 52 and 54, as well as recess 56, to firmly grasp the support structure. Furthermore, the non-linear alignment of the second and first portions 74, 72 of the slot aids in the retention of the support structure, as it is more difficult for support structure to traverse the non-linear path of slot 70 and become detached. This firm grasp or attachment prevents the support structure from backing out of the attachment portion.

In use, hook portion 12 hooks and holds onto a plant limb and attachment portion 16 attaches to a support structure 34 such that plant support device 10 carries at least some of the weight of the plant. Turning now to FIG. 5, hook portion 12 is seen holding up a plant limb and support structure 34 is seen passing through attachment section 16, such that the weight of the plant causes the support device 10 to be oriented in a generally vertical orientation. This type of orientation can further increase the strength of the attachment between portion 16 and the string, as the string rests in the notches 82 of each of the ears 62. The weight of the plant pulls the support device 10 downwardly into the generally vertical orientation which causes the ears 62 to rotate to more of horizontal orientation, forcing the string 34 further into notch 82 and locking the device 10 in place on the string. This helps prevent the support device from sliding down the string 34. Thus, it will be appreciated that the shaft 14 acts on a lever arm to provide a mechanical advantage that is used to bend the string 34 out of its vertical position to thereby lock the support device in place. It will also be appreciated that the force applied to the shaft 14 lever arm comes from the weight of the plant itself so that the heavier the plant, the tighter that the device 10 is locked onto its support string 34.

It will thus be apparent that there has been provided in accordance with the present invention a plant support device which achieves the aims and advantages specified herein. Some of those aims and advantages include providing an inexpensive, yet strong, plant support device that is easy to install and remove. It will, of course, be understood that the foregoing description is of preferred exemplary embodiments of the invention and that the invention is not limited to the specific embodiments shown. Various changes and modifications will become apparent to those skilled in the art. For example, one or more of the hook portion 12, attachment portion 16, and handle 32 could be rearranged such that they extend outwardly from a different circumferential position on the shaft; that is, they extend outwardly in a different direction. Also, the relative size, shape, orientation, etc. of the slot 70 could differ from the exemplary embodiment shown here. Moreover, one or both of the ears 62 could be eliminated or moved from the exemplary position shown in the drawings. These are, of course, only some of the changes that could be made to the plant support device disclosed herein, as all such changes and modifications are intended to be within the scope of the present invention.

As used in this specification and appended claims, the terms “for example,” “for instance,” and “such as,” and the verbs “comprising,” “having,” “including,” and their other verb forms, when used in conjunction with a listing of one or more components or other items, are each to be construed as open-ended, meaning that that the listing is not to be considered as excluding other, additional components or items. Other terms are to be construed using their broadest reasonable meaning unless they are used in a context that requires a different interpretation. 

1. A plant support device, comprising: an elongated shaft portion having first and second ends; a hook portion for supporting a plant segment and being connected to said first end of said shaft portion; an attachment portion for attaching to a support structure and being connected to said second end of said shaft portion, said attachment portion includes a first projection and a complementary recess that are separated from one another by a slot, wherein said plant support device is installed on the support structure such that said slot receives the support structure and said first projection and said recess retain the support structure.
 2. The plant support device of claim 1, wherein said plant support device is made from a copolymer polypropylene material having an ultraviolet stabilizer.
 3. The plant support device of claim 1, wherein said hook portion has a larger cross-sectional shape than said first end of said shaft portion, such that the junction there between is tapered.
 4. The plant support device of claim 1, wherein said hook portion has an inner diameter that is in the range of 0.25″ to 1″, inclusive.
 5. The plant support device of claim 1, wherein said shaft portion includes a handle that generally extends outwardly away from said shaft portion.
 6. The plant support device of claim 5, wherein said hook portion, said attachment portion and said handle all extend outwardly away from said shaft portion in the same general direction.
 7. The plant support device of claim 1, wherein said shaft portion has a length that is in the range of 2″ to 5″, inclusive.
 8. The plant support device of claim 1, wherein said attachment portion further includes a first section from which said first projection extends, and a second section into which said complementary recess extends, wherein said first and second sections generally oppose one another across said slot.
 9. The plant support device of claim 8, wherein said first section is a taper section and said second section is a forward section.
 10. The plant support device of claim 8, wherein either said first or second sections includes a second projection for further retaining the support structure.
 11. The plant support device of claim 8, wherein said second section further includes a hook section.
 12. The plant support device of claim 8, wherein said first and second sections at least define first and second slot portions there between for receiving the support structure.
 13. The plant support device of claim 12, wherein said first and second slot portions are non-linearly aligned.
 14. The plant support device of claim 1, wherein said attachment portion further includes one or more ears extending outwardly away from said attachment section.
 15. The plant support device of claim 14, wherein said ear(s) include a notch for receiving the support structure.
 16. The plant support device of claim 14, wherein said ear(s) extend outwardly by a distance of 0.05″ to 0.5″, inclusive.
 17. A plant support device, comprising: an elongated shaft portion having first and second ends; a hook portion for supporting a plant segment and being connected to said first end of said shaft portion; an attachment portion for attaching to a support structure and being connected to said second end of said shaft portion, said attachment portion includes first and second sections defining at least a first and second slot portion there between, wherein said first and second slot portions are non-linearly aligned such that they retain the support structure.
 18. A plant support device for use with a support structure such as a string or wire, said plant support device comprising: a hook; a clip having a slot to receive the support structure, said slot having a complex contoured path to retain the support structure within said slot; a shaft extending along an axis and interconnecting said hook and clip, said hook and said clip each extending laterally away from the axis and being disposed within a common plane; and a pair of ears attached to said clip adjacent said slot and extending laterally away from said clip on opposite sides of the common plane, said ears each having a notch sized to receive the support structure. 